


Gossip

by Beth Harker (Beth_Harker)



Category: Newsies (1992)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-30
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-30 07:01:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17219150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beth_Harker/pseuds/Beth%20Harker
Summary: Crutchy describes the lodging house residents for a pair of new newsies, and some feelings are hurt.





	Gossip

The twin boys were small, with freckles and pointy noses. They sat on the floor in front of Crutchy’s bunk, listening as he recited the ways of the lodging house for them. It wasn’t often that Crutchy got first access to a new lodger, much less two of them at once, but Jack had made some vague comment about these boys being Crutchy’s responsibility before wandering off, and sometimes that was all it took.

“Let’s see,” Crutchy rambled. He’d been talking for nearly an hour now, making sure these kids knew everything they would need to to survive on the cold Manhattan streets. Now he was on to talking about the other lodgers, which was one of his favorite topics. “If you need a good way to spin a headline, Jack’s the guy to ask. If you gotta borrow money, try Swifty. He don’t come by it honest, so he don’t care where it goes.”

Swifty gave a quick wave from his bunk, apparently not objecting to the description.

“Bumlets is a dancer, so if you need a dancer, ask Bumlets.”

“What do we need a dancer for?” asked one of the twins.

“You’ll know when the time comes,” said Crutchy. “You’ll just know. Besides, it ain’t nice to go around insulting dancers.”

“We weren’t…” the other twin started, but Crutchy cut him off.

“Itey’s the one over there with the curly hair. He don’t speak English so good, but he’s real nice if you don’t mind not being able to understand him. And the one with the eye patch,” Crutchy lowered his voice, and leaned in conspiratorially. “that’s Kid Blink, and he’s a real piece of work. Guess he didn’t have it so good before coming here. You just look at him wrong, and he’ll punch your teeth out.”

Blink stood up to go outside, and Mush followed him. The one twin who had been staring at Blink looked away rapidly. As for Crutchy, if he noticed, he didn’t give any indication. He was busy explaining that David Jacobs didn’t live with them, but that they needed to know about him anyway.

——

“You know what Crutchy’s full off?” Blink asked, pacing on the steps of the lodging house.

“Bees?” Mush asked. Blink paused to stare at him. Apparently bees hadn’t been what he was going to say. “I mean the kind that bite you and fly up your rear end,” Mush amended.

“I was going to say something that comes out thereabouts, but sure. Bees. He’s full of the nastiest, stupidest bees there ever was, and he’s lucky I didn’t punch his teeth out, just like he was saying.”

“You’re doing really good,” Mush said. His voice was encouraging, and that almost stung more.

“I’m a mess,” groaned Blink. He tore at his hair, and continued pacing.

Mush gave no answer, at first, other than a shrug. Blink took that to mean that Mush knew him better than anybody else, and knew he was broken in some fundamental way.

Suddenly Mush’s face lit up. “You know what you ain’t?” he asked.

“What?”

“A gossip,” Mush said. “And Crutchy is. Besides, you’re my best friend, and Crutchy isn’t. Who cares if you got a short fuse. We all have our problems, right Kid?”

Blink sighed, softening in a way that he only would for Mush. “All of us except for you,” he said. If his voice was tired and resigned, it was also filled with affection.


End file.
